March 17 was not a lucky day for a Bibb County Deputy and his wife who were arrested by Jones County officers and are facing multiple charges.
Michael Scott Dorough was arrested while on the job in Macon with assistance of the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office. He held the rank of sergeant in the department. The officer was charged in Jones County with incest, cruelty to children in the first degree and influencing witnesses.
Ashley Dorough was arrested at her residence the same day and charged with cruelty to children in the first degree and influencing witnesses. Both are being held without bond.
The case against Michael Dorough is anything but simple with the Bibb County deputy having been on the radar of Jones County Sheriff’s Department investigators for quite some time.
He was arrested March 11, 2024, at his Jones County residence, a result of a domestic situation that became physical with a family member. That case was ultimately nol prossed June 20, 2025, reportedly because the victim did not want to prosecute.
JCSO Investigator Lt. Crystal Murphy said in a March 19 interview that information recently received refocused the investigation. It is believed that Dorough is the father of a child conceived with a stepdaughter while he was married to her biological mother, leading to the incest charge.
Murphy said the behavior of Ashley Dorough as the case against Michael developed is the reason for her charges.
“She took an active role in the coverup,” the investigator said. There are multiple children between the couple. Michael had a daughter and Ashley had three small children when they married in 2011. They also have a child together. His st00epchildren are now 16, 18, and 20.
Murphy said the investigation is far from over.
